


Bruce Banner- Doubts

by Skellyagogo



Category: The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Angst and Fluff and Smut, F/M, Female reader insert, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Smut, Romantic Fluff, Sexual Tension, Smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-12
Updated: 2019-12-12
Packaged: 2021-02-25 20:53:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,853
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21771754
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skellyagogo/pseuds/Skellyagogo
Summary: He asks for help not wanting to make a fool of himself, but what could possibly come from an innocent request?  Anxiety strikes fierce and everything you'd shoved down comes roaring to live.
Kudos: 5





	Bruce Banner- Doubts

  


***************************

“I can solve quantum entanglements, create life with Tony through A.I. and robots, perform medical procedures, I’ve even learned to tame the Other Guy, but this is… this is outta my wheelhouse Y/n. Maybe we should stop, I’m not getting any better. It’s been weeks.” He sunk to the floor in a fit of frustration and laid back wiping the sweat from his face staring at the ceiling. I couldn’t tell if he was more upset with himself or the thought that he was disappointing me.

“Hey, it’s alright. Do you really think anyone gets that good in just a few weeks?” I laid beside him and leaned my head on his outstretched arm. “We haven’t found what makes you comfortable yet. Just remember, you can’t force it Bruce, you’ve got to FEEL it.”

“Yeah, I guess.” It was the sound of perpetual disappointment. The tone one gets after a lifetime of screw-ups, mess-ups, and just not feeling good enough. I knew that tone myself, I’d heard it enough times coming out of my own mouth and in my head. “You make it look so easy like you’re floating on air. All I’m doing is stomping on your toes.”

“No you don’t, I won’t listen to that talk in my gym.” I bolted upright and sat smiling at him. His eyes glanced up at mine seeing the defiant smile on my face. Even as dejected as he was over the lack of progress, there was something that made him fight back a grin.

“Your gym?!” A tiny smile formed on the edges of his mouth. I always found it intriguing the way his eyes would widen and crinkle when he smiled at me.

“Damn straight, the rest of those idiots get that big room across the Compound, this is my spot.”

In truth, it was a warehouse building on the property that Clint, Nat and I emptied out. We filled it with an obstacle course, high wires that stretched from rafter to rafter. It’d become like an agility center for the three of us with an open floor in the middle for tumbling and etc. Most people assume fighting is all about brute force and brains, but if you’re too bulked up to get out of the way of a hit then you’re already screwed. More often than not though, Nat and I used the floor to dance. She had her ballet and I had my hodgepodge of everything.

We’d just stretch and blast the music as loud as we could stand. Our bodies moving and turning, constantly in motion. We’d keep going just until the point our muscles felt like jello. Say what you will about lifting weights, but none of them could keep up with Nat and me on foot. Agile was the way to go, at least for me.

“Lay back down and take a break, at least for my sanities sake. We’ve been at this for hours.” He patted the spot next to him. There was a tired slightly exhausted smile that was fighting to come out. I loved it when he looked like that, tired, but elated. His eyes were so expressive when he smiled like that.

We’d been close as friends for years since the New York incident. When Tony was too much to deal with or Bruce just wanted some peace and quiet he’d head to my lab. Not that I was a genius that warranted a lab by any means, I was just good tinkering with things. I suppose it was mostly the Technopath abilities I was born with, either way, Bruce knew he could work in my lab without getting annoyed like he would with Tony. I’m pretty sure he came in there more often than he really needed to but he was easy to talk to.

I’d jog around the lab going from project to project and he had his own little area off in the back corner hidden from view in case Tony came looking for him. The worst thing he had to put up with in my lab was the occasional impromptu singing when a song got stuck in my head. Bruce was shy around the others that much was obvious. It took him ages to warm up to anyone, fear of the Other Guy causing trouble, but with me, it seemed different. There was a never-ending calmness near each other even when there shouldn’t have been, I couldn’t explain it. He was quiet and introverted, not that I wasn’t introverted myself, but I could deal with social situations and handle the social anxiety of it all better than he could, especially at Tony’s infamous parties.

“So,” I laid with my hands behind my head, eyes glancing his way. “Why are you putting yourself through this ‘torture’ in the first place? You never told me.” He turned attention back to the ceiling and let out a deep sigh.

“To be honest, I wanted to impress someone, but I think that may have been a bad idea.” I hated hearing the downtrodden way he spoke. The thought that he’d finally broken out of his shell enough for someone felt like a punch in the chest though.

“Why is it a bad idea? Dancing is fun and the moves aren’t just for the dance floor either,” I chuckled wiggling my eyebrows. I could see him roll his eyes at the blatantly obvious sexual innuendo. That was my defense mechanism, making jokes.

“I’m a relatively smart guy, not that I’m trying to pump my ego like Tony, but when it comes to her, I-I… don’t know how to tell her how I feel. Besides, I think she’s into someone else.” His eyes flickered my way quickly and back to the ceiling.

“You know, you have nothing to be so nervous about Bruce.” I leaned up resting on my elbow watching the thoughts as they floated across his eyes. “Just tell her, I know upfront and in your face isn’t your thing, but you kinda have to be sometimes.”

“It’s not that simple,” he rubbed his face in his hands, letting out a deep exhale of air. “I’ve known her for a long time and… she probably doesn’t feel the same and if I say something then what happens if I lose her as a friend? She’s been there for me through everything and I don’t think I could handle her not being in my life because I made her feel uncomfortable.”

“Bruce, what’s not to like? You’re brilliant and funny and have the kindest soul I think I’ve ever met in my life.” I slid my hand into his giving a comforting squeeze. “Why does it seem like you’re trying to change yourself?”

That was the worst thing anyone could ever do, especially him. Countless times throughout history people have changed every detail about themselves to suit the attraction of another person and for what? Heartbreak and torment? He was perfectly fine just the way he was. Who cared if parties weren’t his thing or dancing. If he wanted to work in the lab all night or sit up in the library reading well into the morning hours then who was this woman to make him want to change that?

“I’m not changing anything, I’m just trying to break out from the walls I built up.” His husky voice was faintly defensive, those soft chocolate brown eyes kept darting my way.

“Is this woman you’re trying to impress the reason why you’ve got scruff growing on your face?” I bit my lip suppressing a smile, had to admit he looked good with a little scruffy beard growing on that face of his.

“Oh, uh,” his hand instinctively scratched at his two-week-old beard. “Stupid idea, maybe if I looked a little more rugged. I’m going to shave it…”

“No, don’t.” His head turned my way, eyes scrunched in bafflement. Those stunning eyes flickering between my own. The heat spread across my neck and worked its way over my cheeks. His eyes widened watching it. “I think you look handsome with it.”

“You think?” He was so sweet in his naivety about what women found attractive. I thought the patches of grey made him look distinguished. Then again I was biased, I’d always found him attractive, but he’d never shown interest in seeing anyone so I kept it to myself.

“Honestly for one of the smartest men I know, you sure are dumb,” I couldn’t help but laugh. The stunned opened mouthed look he shot my way only made it worse. “You have no idea how attractive you really are, do you?” I jumped up off the floor and held out my hand towards him. I wanted to start dancing again before he could process what I’d said. So much for keeping my thoughts to myself. “Come on, let’s try Salsa, that’s repetitive in its steps.”

I showed him the basic steps and he agreed it was repetitive enough for him to pick up. For over an hour we kept practicing and repeating the steps over and over. His confidence increasing a little each step, soon his body moved with ease and felt comfortable enough to take over leading me around the floor. He even felt satisfied enough to ad-lib in moves, like a spin here and there or turning me so my back was to his chest as we continued the steps.

It started to feel as if we’d been doing this dance together for years, well-practiced and self-assured. Bruce wore an almost permanent smile, even started laughing at how smoothly the dancing had become. A song I’d recently gotten addicted to echoed in the warehouse, the bass thumping through the walls and floor, Don’t Care by Ed Sheeran.

The atmosphere changed and something was different in the way we held each other hearing that song. All that space between us before as we danced disappeared the closer we moved towards each other. The song wasn’t even the least bit romantic or sexual but something unexplained was felt in the air around us. Everything until then had been playful and friendly, but something just broke free of its cage.

My movements were more sensual, more intimate, his own had become more dominant. There was more intent, if not a deeper hidden agenda in the way my hips shook before him. The temperature in the room seemed to increase about twenty degrees, whether it was the dancing finally getting to me or the newfound way his eyes tracked my movement I didn’t know.

An unusually seductive smirk clung to his lips as we danced, a darkness in his eyes when he pulled me in closer trapping my thigh in between his. I had to take a second look at his eyes because I could have sworn they’d flickered dark green. His hands let go of mine only to place mine around his neck. None of this was anything like him, he’d never shown even a hint of this side of himself in all the time I’d known him. I didn’t really care at this point either, blame it on the song or a dry spell in my love life. The music still pumping throughout the room, nervous energy buzzing around both of us as we swayed on that spot in the middle of the room. Giving up on Salsa dancing in favor of a friction-filled grind.

“Bruce,” his name came out in a low throaty whisper. I could feel my heart thumping rapidly in my chest.

His face inching closer to mine, his fingers trailing up from their hold on my waist and tangling in my hair. I could feel the heat of his breath against my face, the faint touch of his lips as they swept across my cheek. I’d closed my eyes wanting this for so long. There was an urgency but a softness in the way he kissed. His hold tightened like he was afraid to let go. The kiss quickly intensified, my mouth parted and he nibbled on my bottom lip.

In a move that seemed to stun even himself, he tugged off my t-shirt tossing it across the room. His fingers grazed down my shoulders, they swirled in circles across my collar bone. Faint feather-like touches over my bra, the harsh flick of this thumbs over my nipples before resting on the bare skin of my waist. Hungry eyes scanned over me dancing in front of him in yoga pants and a sports bra. They lingered on my chest, his tongue licked across his lips. He lost himself again in a kiss, but he was enjoying it, we both were. A tiny moan escaped my lips and I swear it sounded like he growled just hearing it.

It wasn’t fair in my mind him standing there with more clothes on than me, I fumbled pulling off his sweatshirt. His head had gotten tangled in the hoodie but he chuckled tossing it aside. I cupped those bristly cheeks of his in my palms attacking his lips in a feverish pace. I wanted where this was headed, but alas my luck was never that great. The massive rolling door to the warehouse opened behind us creaking and drowning out the music flooding the room with the brightness of rare winter sunlight. A cold breeze nipped at my skin.

“Shit, sorry, we’ll come back,” Clint coughed turning on the spot trying to shut the door again as Nat appeared by his side. I jumped back from Bruce, my face reddened in embarrassment. His eyes darted angrily towards Clint with a subtle hint of green traveled across his skin in waves.

“It’s fine Clint, I think we’re done for today,” I rambled quickly jogging towards my gym bag. I don’t know what that just happened between us, but when I turned back towards Bruce his eyes were on Natasha smiling bashfully. An adoring giddy look shared between the two.

'I should have known it was for her,’ I whispered angrily to myself.

********

“So, a little birdie tells me something happened between you and Banner yesterday?” Tony’s drawling deep voice broke the silence in my lab making me jump, the sonic crossbow I’d been working on slipped through my fingers and clattered on the workbench.

“Damn it Stark, wear a fucking bell!” I growled picking up the pieces trying to fit them back together manually.

I’d been flustered and distracted since I’d left the warehouse yesterday. My mind couldn’t stop thinking about the way he looked at me, the touch of his hands, that damned kiss and where it was obviously going. That damned panty soaking growl he made when I moaned mid-kiss. The power supply wouldn’t fit back in its housing unit and tossed the crossbow across the room shattering it against the wall letting out a frustrated hiss.

“Relax,” he chuckled. “I’ll knock next time I promise, no need to trash your project.” His eyes were sympathetic when he saw the state of me. Puffy red eyes and the inability to look at him.

“It wasn’t working right anyway,” I huffed plopping myself down on the chair beside my workbench. Tony analyzed me with squinted curiosity as he leaned against the workstation.

He watched as small things around the lab started to dance across tables and the floor. A subtle flicker in the overhead lights and a low hum of white noise coming out of the speakers. Tony smiled to himself seeing the handful of half-empty coffee cups and energy drink cans around the table, the jittery shake of my body.

“Have you been locked in here all night?” He mused playfully, he knew the signs of sleeplessness from staring at himself in the mirror after a bender in his own lab.

“It’s possible, not like I have big tits, red hair and a killer come hither smile to be doing anything else but stay in my lab,” I mumbled into my hands. I knew I was overtired, I could see the floaters in my eyes. My body was fighting against my brain to stay awake.

“What was that?” The giant smirk spread across his face, he’d heard me. I despised that smug righteous look in his eyes.

“Nothing, just busy, too many things on my mind and too little time to get them all created.” My elbows rested on the workbench and my chin settled in my palms.

I could have very well fallen asleep right then and there if it wasn’t for the fact that every time I closed my eyes I saw Bruce, felt his touch. My subconscious wandering about in a haze. Picturing the feel of his weight on me, smiling down at me as his hips rocked and thrust. The way he’d smile before his face would disappear leaving kisses down my neck and chest. I shook my head out of that trance before I flustered myself worse than I already was. I tried to hide the flush on my face but failed.

“Does this have anything to do with what F.R.I.D.A.Y. showed me on the surveillance footage?” He sounded almost elated as he spoke. A faint laugh left his mouth seeing me shoot up straight in my chair glaring at him with wide eyes.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about, she’s lying, maybe a corrupted line of code.” I busied myself making random pieces of equipment on the table in front of me mold together trying to recreate the sonic crossbow. Tony sighed watching me try to escape in my denial.

“You like him don’t you?” He folded his arms still watching me work with a little smile.

“You have no idea what you’re talking about Stark.” There wasn’t even the slightest bit of the usual confidence in my voice as I retorted back. The machinery in front of me coming to life as it built itself, but the second he gently placed his hand on mine, it all fell apart.

“I’ve seen the way you look at him lately Y/n.” It was a frightening thing when Tony was soft and compassionate. “You even keep his favorite tea on hand in your lab along with that organic honey he loves.” His eyes darted over towards my Keurig and a box full of the aforementioned tea.

“It doesn’t matter, he’s got a thing for someone else.” I leaned back in my chair resting my hands behind my head staring at the pile of parts scattered across the table. “He only wanted help with his dancing to impress someone and by what I saw yesterday I know who it is. There’s no competing with her either.”

“Do you really think so little of yourself? He kissed you, I saw it! F.R.I.D.A.Y. was over the fucking moon about it too. I’ve never seen him with that level of confidence before and it was all because of you. If Clint hadn’t opened that damned door…” He left out a frustrated breath and smiled softly. “Are you so blind to not see how he looks at you? To see the way you affect him? He’s growing a damned beard because of some stupid comment you made about Steve’s! He comes down to your lab just to be near you even when I’m not in the damned building.” His words should have comforted or reassured something inside me but all it did was open the flood gates.

The tears streamed down my face soaking into my lab coat, all I could do was close my eyes as I shook my head in denial. He couldn’t love me, there wasn’t anything to love. I was a mess, a wreck, kept my anxieties and insecurities balled up so tight inside I prevented myself from any happiness. Tony wrapped his arms around my shoulders tugging me into a hug as I sobbed into his chest. All the insecurities I’d buried deep for years welled up to the top and overflowed. I was never good enough, always the freak, never the beauty just the nerdy girl who spent hours in the library.

I wasn’t svelte like Nat, nowhere near as smart as Tony, I wasn’t as brave as Steve or confident as Sam. I was the girl everyone liked but no one could ever figure out why. Why was I like this? How could the one man I’d felt so comfortable nearest affect me so? How could one simple kiss make me question everything? It’s not like I had much to offer besides a smile, a shoulder to lean on and an ability to create or destroy whatever tech my imagination came up with. Emotions and the human mind were the only machines I couldn’t control or else I wouldn’t have allowed myself to feel this way.

“It was the heat of the moment,” I croaked, his hand stroked my back trying to calm me down. 'Hello my name is Denial and no that’s not a river in Egypt’ I quipped in my own head. “He loves Nat, not me, it’s always been Natasha.”

“That’s bullshit and you know it.” I pulled away from him scowling wiping my eyes. “You wouldn’t be hurting like this if you didn’t love him.”

“You love Steve so what’s your point you hypocritical asshat!” The argumentative tone in my voice let him know there would be no winning if he tried to continue.

“Touche,” he huffed. “Maybe both of us have something to work on then. Neither of us should be alone wallowing in self-pity anymore Y/n,” he lamented as he left my lab.

********

I kept to myself for a few days, hiding either in my lab or in my room. I missed training sessions and team dinners and all because I’d allowed myself to feel like that nerdy girl in high school all over again. There were several times a shadow walked passed my door, they would stop in front of it as if debating on knocking before letting out a sigh and walking away. The shadow had just left my door for the fourth time that day.

“I’m a grown-ass woman why do I have to be such an idiot!” I yelled at myself from my bed. I pulled a pillow over my head and let out an exhausted scream into it.

“Maybe because you’ve never felt like this before?” F.R.I.D.A.Y. chimed in.

“I’ve been in love before F.R.I.D.A.Y., it felt nothing like this,” I grumbled. Leave it to me to having a fully functioning friendship with an A.I.

“Did you ever think that those other times were actually infatuation and lust, not love? That can feel the same as love you know.” She sure sounded chipper this evening, it was a little unnerving.

“Yes, I know that,” I bemoaned but the more I thought about it the more her thought process seemed accurate. There was something deeper there, the thought of being just friends with Bruce broke my heart. I wanted more than just friends.

“What’s really bothering you?” She asked. Tony was convinced the more she interacted with me the more human her programming became. It fascinated him, like a long term experiment. I sat up on my bed staring at her screen across my room.

“I’m a college drop-out, I have no family, my only friends are the people I work with. I live in some rich guys Compound because I literally have nothing of my own, and I’m surrounded by people who are far superior to me on every level. The only thing I have going for me is the ability to control tech with my fucking mind!” I stared at her screen scowling rattling off my failures. That nagging feeling inside me that I was never good enough just wouldn’t die.

“And your point is?” Sarcasm from an A.I. was interesting, to say the least.

“My point is, what in the fuck do I have to offer a delightfully gorgeous but shy man with an overly attractive beard, 7 Ph.D.’s and an MD?” I swear if F.R.I.D.A.Y. was real I would have thrown the pillow at her damned face.

“Go look in the mirror,” she laughed softly.

“What?!” I stared at her screen like … well like she was crazy.

“Go. Look. In. The. Mirror.” She spoke again with a little more authority. I swore she had a noise that sounded an awful lot like a foot tapping on the ground playing through the speaker system in my room.

I begrudgingly slid out of bed and walked into my bathroom. I stood before the mirror resting my palms on the countertop. Every flaw and imperfection stood out on display. The crooked smile, the ears that stuck out a little bit too far to my liking from years of tucking my hair behind them. The strange eyes that could never decide what color they wanted to be. One day they were brown, the next blue or green and on rare days they even seemed golden. The freckles that popped up from out of nowhere even if I hadn’t been in the sun. The scars from missions gone wrong and distracted training sessions.

“What do you see?” She asked, her voice sounded from the console box in the bathroom wall.

“I see nothing special,” I sighed watching my shoulders dip in the mirror. Why couldn’t I get that nagging anxiety out of my system? 

“Would you like to know what Dr. Banner thinks of you? Or Clint, or Sam, I could keep going just to prove a point.” F.R.I.D.A.Y. if she had a face would have been smiling, at least that’s what I heard as she spoke. A righteous smugness akin to Tony’s wrapped up in a velvety sweet Irish accent.

“Enlighten me oh Swammy of the Compound.” I rolled my eyes knowing full well her systems could see it.

A video popped up in my mirror, a surveillance feed from Tony’s main lab. Tony sat on a stool listening intently as Bruce paced back and forth in front of him. Bruce kept crossing his arms over his chest, but then they’d flail about in a fit of overzealous rambling.

“You should have seen the look in her eyes,” his arms flew up in the air above his head as he ranted away in a troubled voice. “I thought the more time I spent with her the easier it would be to say something.”

“Obviously that didn’t work out so well,” Tony smirked earning a glare from Bruce.

“No, it made it worse. It’s like I friend-zoned myself, I don’t want to be just her friend Tony, I want more. I’m not like the rest of you, I can’t just flash a smile and get what I want. If that was the case then I would have done that the second I met her.” He stopped near Tony and leaned against a table, his hands resting over his face, fingers rubbing his forehead. He was visibly annoyed with himself, his voice was so pained and gutted.

“Christ, Bruce that was years ago!” I watched Tony’s eyes go wide darting around Bruce in shock. "What the hell man!? If you had it that bad why didn’t you ask for help? I would have done everything in my power short of locking you two in a room to get you guys together. You know what I’m lying, I would have just locked you in a room with Marvin Gaye, Champagne and hoped to be named Godfather of the future children.“

"Look at me, Tony!” Bruce dropped his hands to his sides and shook his head in obvious frustration. “I don’t look anything like the rest of you. I’m still that dweeby guy in button-down shirts and khaki’s you made fun of at Oxford. I look like the poster boy for Harvard’s college admissions catalog.”

“It’s just Y/n, not the Queen. She’s the damned epitome of the Girl Next Door, she’s harmless. For fucks sakes Bruce she’s got a supply of your damned nasty tea in her lab! She jumped when you asked her to help you dance. You’ve got your own workstation in HER lab. You fucking kissed her! What is so complicated about telling her the truth?” Tony had tried to stay calm, but the longer he ranted the more he raised his voice.

“Because I don’t just like her you pompous ass,” Bruce yelled. The veins in his neck popping out, his skin glinting green. “I love her! Even the Other Guy feels the same about her, but look at me!” He took a deep breath calming himself from hulking out in the lab. "I can’t even do a fraction of the things she can and she does it all with her fucking mind, Tony. Her mind! I’m not that smart man, Ph.D.’s or not, how can I… why… why’d someone like her go for a freak like me?“ Tony watched him in disbelief shaking his head.

"You’re not a freak Bruce. She likes you, I know she does.” Tony’s words just didn’t sink in for Bruce.

“She sings Tony,” Bruce closed his eyes lost in thought. “It’s like heaven on earth, and she does it without thinking about. The Other Guy thinks about her voice when he’s trying to calm down. The way she smiles at me when we’re working together, but that kills me because that can’t be for me.”

When Bruce opened his eyes, Tony saw years of built of doubt. All this time Tony thought Bruce was the way he was because of a fear of Hulk getting out, but in truth, it was fear of Y/n not seeing him the way he viewed her. 

“Her mind is amazing and how fast she processes everything, I’ve never seen anything like it. Y/n is the most extraordinary specimen of mind, beauty, and heart I have ever seen in my life and logically speaking she shouldn’t exist period. That sort of perfection doesn’t exist but there she is and so out of my league.” His shoulders slumped and his head dipped as his doubts tormented himself.

“A human brain is wired for making a connection with another human being, but when a human experiences trauma like both of you have, it rewires itself for protection. That’s why healthy relationships or even starting one is difficult for wounded people.” F.R.I.D.A.Y stated nonchalantly, but whether or not it was to me or Bruce in the lab I couldn’t tell.

“F.R.I.D.A.Y. I’ve seen enough.” I felt the tears trickle down wetting my face. I don’t remember even starting to cry, but they were there. Wounded and full of doubt, no wonder Bruce and I were drawn to each other.

*******

The venue was extravagant, it was a Christmas Wonderland as far as the eyes could see. Lighted and decorated Christmas trees littered every corner and free space. Garlands draped across every table and over windows. Mistletoe hung in each doorway at a mischievious request by Tony. The music bounced back and forth between classic Christmas songs and ones you could actually dance to, not that people were on the dance floor doing anything other than talking.

I sat at the bar watching the crowd, amusing myself in people watching as the night wore on. The twinkling fairy lights strung from the ceiling, the flicker of the candlelight on every table. It was without a doubt a stunning sight to see. I could see Tony at the end of the bar nervously approaching Steve. Stark was beyond jittery, he kept smoothing out his hair and his jacket the closer he got to Steve. They both had tiny smiles on their faces as Steve listened to Tony prattle on anxiously. It was probably the first time since meeting Tony that I’d never seen the smug confident expression that he often wore nonexistent on his lips. There was a mix of fear and apprehension in his eyes the longer he rattled on in front of Steve.

The blush crept from Steve’s neck and swept across his cheeks. That tiny grin turned into a wide smile and a soft throaty laugh. Stark must have taken it the wrong way because he stopped talking altogether and frowned, he was half-turned to walk away. Steve stood up from the barstool he’d been seated on and pulled Tony towards him, kissing him into a stunning mess. When Tony pulled away he was gasping for air with the biggest grin on his face. Steve just smiled and pulled him out on the dance floor.

“Well shit, he grew some balls,” I muttered out loud in awe watching Steve and Tony. They looked at each other as if they were the only two people in the room.

“Don’t you think it’s about time you do the same?” Natasha mused from the other side of the bar mixing a cocktail with a tiny smirk. She could see the hurt twitch in my eye as I glanced at her. “In case you’re wondering, he’s not into me, never was. He only came to me for advice about you since F.R.I.D.A.Y. wouldn’t tell him anything but 'nut up or shut up’.”

“She would say that,” I snorted and shook my head hiding a smile.

“He’s across the room talking with Strange and Thor if you, ya know wanted to 'nut up or shut’.” She pushed a shot my way with a wink and turned her attention back towards Bucky.

I rolled my eyes before knocking back the shot. I let out a hiss from the burn as the alcohol traveled down my throat. Nat was nothing if not a fan of strong liquor. I hopped up off the stool, squared my shoulders and smoothed down my dress as I made my way across the room. Broken could fix broken, that’s why I figured we were so compatible. We evened each other out with the light and the darkness each of us carried inside. Souls from different backgrounds but similar journeys that met in this crazy world on this floating blue marble in the vast expanse of the Galaxy.

I could see Tony smiling at me out of the corner of my eye, he whispered something in Steve’s ear and they both watched as I snuck my way through the throng of people. I could see Thor and Dr. Strange give a brief nod of acknowledgment the closer I got while Bruce was talking. Bruce looked as if he’d been dressed by Loki tonight. A black button-up shirt surprisingly with a few open buttons at the top, black slacks, and a black blazer. I had to admit he looked good and not surprisingly I made Thor and Strange suppress a laugh as they watched my head tilt and my eyes linger on Bruce’s butt. I tapped him on the shoulder giving a soft smile.

“Excuse me, could I have a second?” I asked smiling seeing the stunned gaze in his eyes as they darted over me. It was just a simple vintage red sleeveless satin cocktail dress from the 1950s I’d run across with Wanda a few months ago. She made me try it on when we found it and wouldn’t stop nagging me until I bought it. I never thought red was my color but Wanda insisted.

“Uh yeah,” he coughed and backed away, his eyes still admiring the view. Lingering glances knowing what was underneath and what his hands had touched.

“Where do you think you’re going?” I chuckled with a tiny smile. 'You can do this’, I hyped myself up in my head.

“I figured you needed to talk to one of them,” he nodded towards Strange and Thor a little confused.

“Hardly, fancy a dance with me?” I blushed clearing my throat. He scrunched his eyes as both Strange and Thor watched me a little impressed.

“What?” There was a clueless adorableness in his voice, the way the side of his mouth twitched.

“Come on,” I took his hand in mine and gave a gentle pull towards the dance floor. My arms settled around his neck and he cautiously set his on my waist swaying side to side to whatever droll slow song was playing in the background. “You’ve been the shadow outside my door haven’t you?” His eyes averted their gaze on me and instead suddenly finding the floor so interesting.

“Um, well, I just… I was trying…,” he stammered softly. A hint of red swelled on his cheeks.

“S’ alright. I owe you an apology, Bruce.” I almost lost my courage with how fast his eyes found mine again with a stumped but shy look on his face.

Even knowing he could turn into a giant muscled giant who could decimate an entire city if the mood stuck, there was something captivating about Bruce, I couldn’t help but want to protect and harbor him from the cruelties of the world. There was a small tic of movement at the corner of his mouth hidden behind the beard comprehending my words.

“Why…why do you need to apologize to me?” That embarrassed sound in his words weighed on my heart. I let my arms fall from around his neck and wrapped them around his upper torso leaning my cheek against his. My lips mere inches from his ear.

“Because I wanted that kiss and everything that would have come after more than you know.” He tried to pull himself back to look at me but I wouldn’t let him. “Just listen please before I lose my nerve.”

“Okay,” his breath tickled in my ear, he was buzzing with curiosity.

“I’ve always been the odd one out, the freak, the weirdo, but with you… you make me feel normal. I like it, but sometimes it’s a little frightening.” It didn’t matter that I couldn’t see his face, the feel of his arms squeezing me tight was enough to know he understood.

“We can be freaks together or finally accept that in this messed up world we’re the normal ones.” His raspy laugh rumbled against my chest. The slow song we’d been dancing to ended and we found ourselves hearing Don’t Care. He pulled back grinning at me. “It’d be a shame if all that practice went to waste.” He took my hand in his and placed his other on my waist.

Bruce was smiling and not because of some fantastical discovery in the lab, he was smiling so widely at how close we were. His faint whispers counting the steps out loud made me laugh, he was still a little tense. Our friends who were now staring quite surprised at Bruce putting himself out there like that in public. He kept counting the steps afraid to mess up, his hand that held mine out to the side trembled with nervousness.

“Bruce,” My hand left his shoulder and caressed his face as we danced. “Feel it, don’t count it.” He’d come leaps and bounds from when we first started, I didn’t want him to doubt himself anymore. “Take charge like last time, and if it leads to another kiss well, so be it.” I winked and put my hand back on his shoulder.

The nervous shake in his hand disappeared, his grip tightened. A flicker of green streaked across his eyes as he watched my hips shake to the beat. That same confidence from the warehouse roaring to life before me. A devilish smirk led to him sending me into a twirl that made me giggle. Our steps were even smaller now bringing us closer together, but we were in sync. He rested his forehead on mine grinning. The music kept playing in the background but he slowed our steps to halt.

“Bruce?”

His hands were cupping my face, thumbs sweeping over my cheeks before I could blink. That same seductive grin clung to his mouth as his lips crashed into mine. My eyes went wide in surprise, this wasn’t like his at all. Strands of my hair wound around his fingers. The kiss was more intense then it was the first time. I found myself melting into his touch, it was like he had become protective, almost possessive. Claiming what was his right there in front of the world. Tony’s overzealous cheering from somewhere in the crowd earned a middle finger from me as I raised my arm above my head. It gave me a great excuse to run my fingers through his curls. As triumphantly giddy as I was, I knew we were slowly moving into non-public affection.

“Um, Bruce,” I whispered between kisses. “Everyone’s staring.”

“Nonsense, we’re wallflowers,” he groaned trailing kisses down my neck, he was on the hunt for a spot that would make me moan. I giggled watching the blush creep over his cheeks, his eyes flickering around the room seeing everyone watching. He was too used to blending into the background of a crowd. “Mhm, right then.” He gave Strange an odd smile and nodded his head towards me. Strange rolled his eyes in amused annoyance and waved his hands creating a portal.

It was chaos and stumbling limbs tripping over the spare parts and clothes that littered my floor trying to get to my bed. His fingers nimbly behind my back undoing the zipper on my dress as I slid my heels off kicking them to the side of the room. Bruce and his plump pouty lips kissing any inch of skin he could get nearest while we tore ourselves out of our clothes. I could feel my bed strike the back of my calves.

“You sure about this?” Bruce paused briefly eyeing me warily. “I’m not… I don’t look…”

“Bruce, you have a Ph.D. in Biology, what’s it telling you right now?” I smirked standing in front of him naked palming his manhood. Those mesmerizing eyes gliding up and down my figure shuttering at my touch.

“Good point,” he grinned kissing me as I fell backward on the bed laughing.

I could hardly focus on anything other than the feel of his scruffy beard against my bare skin. The way it tickled and poked kissing his way down my chest. The agonizingly slow way he kissed and flicked his tongue around my nipples. The roughness of his hands and their delicate hold on my breasts. He had that flash of dark green in his eyes again watching me as he kissed my upper thigh. Those mysterious eyes of his taking in my every moan and slight movement.

“So wet,” a voice so deep it almost sounded like Hulk’s vibrated through me sending a shiver up my back.

I could tell by the crinkles around his eyes he was more than excited, a deep laugh that reverberated in his chest hearing me gasp feeling his fingers slip inside me. I bit my lip from crying out as he curled and worked his fingers. A satisfied groan echoed in his throat seeing my hands balling up the sheets in a death grip feeling his tongue rolling around my clit. The swirling of his tongue and the humming vibrating in his mouth kept bringing me to the brink and just when the breath would stick in my throat and my hips would buck up smothering his face waiting for the inevitable release he’d break all contact. His tongue would flick and slide over my inner thigh. Time ceased to exist altogether because of that mind-numbingly evil sheer torture of being so close and denied.

“You know, for someone who keeps giving me lust-filled eyes, you’re killing me here,” I groaned feeling on edge ready to tackle him and take charge. My skin felt like it was on fire over the denial of orgasm. Bruce arched a brow smirking kneeling on the bed.

“Can’t fault me for enjoying myself. I don’t wanna wake up from this dream just yet. I might just take all night.” Gotta admit that determined confidence he was showing was a bit of a turn on.

Before I could protest anymore his arms wrapped around my thighs tugging me towards him. He was swift but gentle in his movement, but I felt every bit of him stretching me as he bottomed out inside me. There was no denying his enjoyment, his eyes closed and his head fell back, an indulgent pornographic moan filled the room. He wrapped my legs around him and leaned down resting his forehead on mine. The lust and adoration reflecting in his eyes. I reached above me for something to hold onto only to feel his hand slip into mine, fingers lacing together.

His thrusts were slow and deep, Bruce was the kind of man that knew all about patience. The light pressure of his chest on mine, the hold of his hand in mine. His head nuzzled in the crook of my neck, the slight tinge of pain as he bit and sucked on my skin. A warm tongue flickering over the mark playfully before the pressure of his lips began to mark a new spot. It was slow but in the same aspect intense, the way he moved and his momentum, the way I countered and met my hips to his.

“Y/n,” the moan muffled in my neck.

I’m ashamed to say that was all it took for the orgasm to explode through me. The fingers of my free hand raked down his back only to end up giving his ass a firm squeeze that made him growl in pleasure. His name echoing out of my mouth in a cry of passionate release. Such a spectacular ass to be hidden behind khaki’s that couldn’t do it justice. It was a prolonged feeling, the intensity of it sending shockwaves through me. His slow methodically thrusts only drawing it out longer, I was on the verge of blacking out it was that damned wonderful.

Bruce was savoring seeing me writhing beneath him, memorizing the blissed-out look on my face, the way he made moan. A soft tug from my fingers tangled in his curls pulling his head down. I wanted those lips, I needed his lips, I didn’t care if I’d wake up in the morning with beard burn. All he could do was chuckle looking down at me begging for his lips. I lifted my head off of the bed to reach him, he was playing hard to get moving farther away.

“Don’t make me angry Bruce,” I bit my lip to hold back the snarky comment. My whole body was on edge ready to explode again. He’d just become my new addiction and I wanted more. I didn’t give a shit if we ever left this bed again.

“And why’s that?” The lust-filled delirium in his eyes as he pulled out only to slam back in rougher over and over no longer afraid he’d hurt me. Hulk was playing nice, even if he could only get a brief glance through Bruce’s eyes.

“You won’t like me when I’m angry,” the hungry smirk hung on my lips trying to hold back a laugh repeating one of his failed lines from years ago. He just grinned not knowing what he was in for.

I rolled him over on his back relishing in the surprise in his eyes. His tongue slid over his lips enjoying the bounce of breasts. Straddling his waist I swiveled my hips feeling him hit every inflamed nerve. My head fell back, eyes closed moaning incoherent words. He felt so good, so warm, every rock of my hips sending a little shock through every nerve ending. That sweet face looking up at me, the slow hazy blinking of his eyes, the heavy rise, and fall of his chest, the deep breath as it left his mouth. I couldn’t help but smirk down at him seeing his hair. Tousled and messy curls sticking up all over the place.

Hours of leaving him in control only drove me mad, I needed a toe-curling, leg cramping, can’t walk straight the next morning release. He numbed my mind, had me begging, pleading for more and all he did was smile. I’d get him back for that, but for now, I needed something earthshattering.

Beads of sweat formed around his hairline the more forceful I was. A sting of pain swept through me feeling the slap on my ass. His fingers kneading into my flesh making him groan. Bruce was struggling to keep himself together. Every rock of my hips sending friction, my walls tightening and clenching around him. Now he was the one begging for release.

“Y/n, please, I’m not gonna last.” He was irresistible from that deep voice to the salt and pepper beard, the spots of distinguished grey in those floppy curls. Oh but that pleading expression flashing in his eyes like a warning.

He tried to lean upward in search of a kiss only to be pushed back down. A snarling growl emanated from his chest, he didn’t like being denied. A forceful push and his lips were on mine, arms wrapped around my back tugging me back down on top of him. He started to counter my every thrust a little more forcefully. The shy and timid Bruce had disappeared leaving a whole new beast of a man in complete control. He let out a deep groan rolling us over. One of his arms under my neck holding me close keeping his lips on mine in desperate kisses. His tongue shoved its way in my mouth exploring, curling around mine. I should have known, it’s always the quiet ones. The green glimmer still present in his eyes while smirking down at me.

The built-up tension ready to explode and he knew it with how tight my thighs were squeezing around his waist. I was a moaning mess, I swore I’d called out his name in every language imaginable. His breath was ragged and his face flushed, the night dragged on in the longest bout of foreplay possible. The groan rumbled in his chest, he couldn’t afford to play nice anymore. Each thrust harder, deeper, he struggled to keep his eyes open he was so blissed out at the feeling of me clenching and squeezing around him. A breathy groan in a soft echo throughout the room feeling the coiled orgasm ready to spring loose.

Pumping away like a mad man, pounding me into the mattress, his face contorted in deep concentration. A slight swivel of his hips in his thrust sent me over the edge. I cried out his name in pure ecstasy and buried my face in his neck leaving a mark of my own. I dug my nails into his back riding it out. The muscles in my thighs quivering from the painstakingly firm hold around his waist. His own thrusts were erratic and stiff. A bellowing roar ripped from his lips as his own release hit and hit hard.

Thrusts became shallow and slow until he pulled out panting resting his head between my breasts, the rest of his body sluggishly laid on top of me. He searched in the mess of sheets lacing his fingers in mine. Exhaustion, pure unadulterated exhaustion and the sweet smell of sex hung in the air around us. Gasping for air, trying to calm the rapid heartbeats. I let my fingers mindlessly run through his hair, his soft snores muffled against my skin. I could get used to this.

“Just… just gimme a little bit. I promised all night,” he mumbled sleepily, his fingers delicately grazing up and down my side.

********

“What’s going on with your face Y/n?” Tony smirked from the kitchen table watching Bruce and I head towards the coffee pot. We’d made no attempt to hide what we’d done all night. I had splotches of skin around my mouth and neck that’d been irritated by immense friction from Bruce’s beard. I wasn’t complaining, a few more days of growth and it wouldn’t be an issue anymore.

“I don’t know, what’s wrong with your neck?” I retorted without even looking back sipping my coffee. Bruce grinned, his eyes flickered from mine to the massive hickey and beard burn on Tony’s own neck. Steve sat beside Tony with a reddened contented look on his face.

“Touche,” he laughed getting up from the table with a noticeable limp and a wobble in his legs as he walked out of the kitchen. “Time to get to work.”

I folded into Bruce’s arm, we both lost ourselves in a fit of laughter watching Tony leave the kitchen.

“Told you he was a bottom,” I giggled. Bruce held his arms around me smiling kissing my forehead.

“I can’t believe I ever doubted this would happen,” he smirked with a little more confidence than usual.


End file.
